Nancheng, military district.
By the third unit of the first floor in Block 101, a crisp doorbell disrupted He Mu's reverie.
"Excuse me, is He Mu there?"
Inside the room and seated on the wheelchair, He Mu shivered slightly upon hearing that rather solemn voice. He replied with a hoarse voice of his own: "Yes."
And he gently pressed a certain button on the wheelchair.
Ring.
An electronic buzz sounded, and the door opened.
The person who entered through the door was a soldier carrying a medium-sized suitcase.
Upon seeing that somewhat familiar suitcase, He Mu's pupils continuously shrunk. He started having difficulty breathing.
"B-Big Brother…"
"Unfortunately, He Feng, Guardian of the Tianmen District in Lingzhou City, met with an accident in service. These are his personal belongings; please sign."
The soldier gave a military salute and handed over a list and pen to He Mu.
He Mu stared at the list blankly and didn't return to his senses for a long time.
Today was his eighteenth birthday. In previous years, his big brother, He Feng, would arrange for a birthday cake and gift to be delivered to his door. They would have arrived by now.
But today… What was delivered to his door were the personal belongings of his big brother.
Even though He Mu hadn't been able to contact his big brother and had more or less expected this, he still couldn't accept this reality.
After all, his big brother was his last relative in this world.
"H-How… did my big brother die?"
He Mu's hands trembled as he took the list.
The reason why his hands shook was firstly because of emotional turmoil. Secondly, he had suffered a serious injury when he was young. The entirety of his body was nearly paralyzed, and he hadn't been able to recover.
If not for advanced technology, it would have been difficult for him to take care of himself.
The soldier knitted his brows slightly, and only responded after a moment. "I am not at liberty to go into details about this matter, but the news will report it."
"I understand."
He Mu answered and signed the list.
Big Brother is a Guardian of the Tianmen District in Lingzhou City. In this world, only the strong can become a Guardian, while the weak…
Will perish.
In his opinion, the soldier in front of him might have been taking into account his feelings, which was why he didn't provide any explanation.
After signing the list with some reluctance, He Mu returned it to the soldier.
"Is there really no other statement about the incident?"
"Apologies. I'm afraid there isn't."
The soldier gave He Mu an apologetic look, carefully placed the suitcase next to the wheelchair, and saluted, before turning around and leaving the house.
After he left, He Mu once again shifted his gaze to the familiar suitcase. At that moment, he was filled with a sense of bewilderment.
He had transmigrated to this parallel world 18 years ago, and now, he was the only one left.
…
After some time, He Mu calmed himself down, took his cellphone out from his pocket, and started searching for relevant news.
A few moments later, he found several news articles that were just published.
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The news was followed by some videos. He Mu took a deep breath and clicked 'play'.
The video consisted of several street surveillance clips.
The first clip showed the streets with some pedestrians and vehicles.
But a few seconds later, the situation suddenly took a turn. A monster over ten meters tall fell from the sky, trampling the road to bits. Under the powerful impact, the pedestrians and vehicles on the street were all blasted away.
Type 1 Monster, Giant Pincer Beast… Total combat power, 995. Possesses great eyesight and hearing. Its weakness is the center of its abdomen, where it can withstand a combat power of 900. Its powerful giant pincers can release a burst of over 1000 combat power.
While observing the monster, He Mu reflexively soliloquized.
This information came from "Monster Illustrations", which used to be a compulsory module for students. However, the module was later removed due to the increasing number of monsters recorded.
He Mu had been paralyzed for more than 10 years and basically self-studied at home, so he had the contents of the "Monster Illustrations" module completely memorized.
Big Brother is a Red Mist Fighter with combat power of above 1000. He also trained in the army for five years. Even if he wasn't in a perfect fighting condition and failed to defeat the Giant Pincer Beast, it doesn't make sense for him to fall due to its threats… Could there be other monsters around?
He Mu was puzzled.
Shortly after, an even more incomprehensible scene appeared on the screen.
The back view of the Giant Pincer Beast was seen fleeing madly in the direction of… the Biological Research Institute!
Immediately afterward, the Giant Pincer Beast viciously smashed its two enormous pincers down, and the video came to an abrupt end.
He Mu subconsciously shook his head. His eyes were filled with disbelief!
"Impossible! Absolutely impossible! Even if Big Brother can't defeat the monster, he wouldn't have chosen to escape, much less lead it to the Biological Research Institute!"
However, he would never mistake that back view. It precisely belonged to his big brother, He Feng!
But… Why?
He Mu glanced at the comments under the video, only to have his heart broken.
Countless people accused his big brother of fleeing from battle. The comments were also interspersed with unpleasant insults.
At that moment, He Mu finally understood why that soldier was unwilling to say the cause of his big brother's death.
So that's how it is.
He Mu put down the cellphone. His mood was extremely complicated, while his mind was overwhelmed.
In this sense of bewilderment, past scenes flashed and circulated in his mind.
He couldn't be clearer as to what kind of a person his big brother was.
…
When he was five years old, his big brother was 12.
One night, a black-haired rat sneaked into their house. Although this monster only had a combat power of 1, it had 100 kilograms of strength, which even ordinary adults might not be able to cope with.
That night, his big brother took a kitchen knife, stood in front of He Mu's bed, and fought hard to hack the black-haired rat to death. He suffered serious injuries.
When he was on the verge of unconsciousness, he said: "Mu, when the doctor comes later, tell them not to inform Dad. Dad is on the front lines and can't afford to be distracted, or he will be in danger…"
From that time on, He Mu felt that his brother was much more mature than his age indicated.
…
When he was eight years old, his big brother was 15.
That year, after his big brother was admitted to the hospital four times, his big brother successfully absorbed the red mist and became a Red Mist Fighter.
Thereafter, he was received by the Guardian of Nancheng for his courageous actions.
When the Guardian asked him why he was so bold, he replied: "My father is a soldier, and he said it is our duty as Red Mist Fighters to protect ordinary people!"
Since then, he had received strong support from the Tengyun Foundation of Nancheng.
That night, his big brother pushed He Mu's wheelchair around half of Nancheng.
Under the blood-red moonlight, his big brother mustered up courage and said to him: "Mu, actually… Apart from trying to cure you, I have a dream all along. But don't laugh at me when I say it!
"I hope to become the most powerful Red Mist Fighter. I will destroy all monsters and avenge Mom and Dad!"
…
When he was 11, his big brother was 18. The latter joined the army that year and left Nancheng.
By the time he returned, it was five years later.
Compared to when he left, that teenager had grown into an adult with determination and glory, exchanged for using hard work, sweat, and blood.
That day, his big brother said to him: "Mu, after a while, I'm going to the Tianmen District in Lingzhou City to serve as a Guardian. Lingzhou City is huge with plenty of big shots. Maybe I can find a cure for you.
"Don't worry, I will only be a Guardian in the Tianmen District for three years. After three years, I will return to Nancheng and become its Guardian. From then on, if there are no special tasks, I won't leave Nancheng."
…
However, his big brother ended up not surviving the first three years.
He Mu lowered his head. The past was unbearable to look back upon.
These years, he witnessed the growth of his teenage brother. He had even entrusted part of his protagonist's dream to him.
And his brother had never let him down either.
If He Mu didn't have his big brother around, he would have already tried to see if he could transmigrate again.
A person like Big Brother would never make such a mistake.
At this thought, He Mu let out a murmur, took out his cellphone, and dialed a number.